There are numerous Electronic Warfare (EW) devices that use Radio Frequency (RF) technology. Military units employ various apparatuses both offensively and defensively to protect soldiers' lives and collect signals intelligence and communicate on the battlefield.
RF devices generally send, receive, or otherwise process signals using some combination of transmitters, receivers or transceivers. In some devices capable of providing a multitude of functionalities, these capabilities are provided by a single transceiver unit. One example of such a transceiver unit was disclosed by the applicant in its prior filed PCT International Application No. PCT/CA2014/050707, entitled “System and Method for Ultra-Wideband Radio Frequency Scanning and Signal Generation” filed Jul. 25, 2014, the contents of which are incorporated by reference.
Where transceiver units are providing a multitude of functionalities, a sequencer is generally used to apportion or sequence the order of events for signals being received or transmitted. The sequencer determines the timing of events handled by the transceiver, and determines the mode of operation at any specific time. Simple sequencers provide fixed periods of time at pre-determined bandwidths for different functions, effectively defining an order of operations in a fixed and predictable manner. Other prior art sequencers are capable of prioritizing certain functions so that these occur in real time. For example, if it is desired to have incoming communications signals received in real time, the sequencer would switch the transceiver to a receive signal model as soon as an incoming signal is detected, even if this temporarily pauses any signal transmission that is occurring.
However, there are significantly more complex scenarios and military-specific events that the prior art has been unable to satisfactorily address.